Retroreflective materials are characterized by the ability to redirect light incident on the material back toward the originating light source. This property has led to the widespread use of retroreflective sheeting for a variety of traffic and personal safety uses. Retroreflective sheeting is commonly employed in a variety of articles, for example, road signs, barricades, license plates, pavement markers and marking tape, as well as retroreflective tapes for vehicles and clothing.
Two known types of retroreflective sheeting are optical element sheeting (e.g., cube corner sheeting) and microsphere-based sheeting. Microsphere-based sheeting, sometimes referred to as “beaded” sheeting, employs a multitude of microspheres typically at least partially embedded in a binder layer and having associated specular or diffuse reflecting materials (e.g., pigment particles, metal flakes or vapor coats, etc.) to retroreflect incident light. Cube corner retroreflective sheeting, sometimes referred to as “prismatic” sheeting, typically comprises a thin transparent layer having a substantially planar first surface and a second structured surface comprising a plurality of geometric structures, some or all of which include three reflective faces configured as a cube corner element.
Typically, a cube corner element includes three mutually perpendicular optical faces that intersect at a single apex. Generally, light that is incident on a corner cube element from a light source is totally internally reflected from each of the three perpendicular cube corner optical faces and is redirected back toward the light source. Presence of, for example, dirt, water, and adhesive on the optical faces can prevent total internal reflection (TIR) and lead to a reduction in the retroreflected light intensity. As such, the air interface is typically protected by a sealing film. However, sealing films may reduce the total active area, which is the area over which retroreflection can occur. Further, sealing films increase the manufacturing cost. Additionally, the sealing process can create a visible pattern in the retroreflective sheeting that is undesirable for many applications, such as, for example, use in a license plate and/or in commercial graphics applications where a more uniform appearance is generally preferred. Metalized cube corners do not rely on TIR for retroreflective light, but they are typically not white enough for daytime viewing of, for example, signing applications. Furthermore, the durability of the metal coatings may be inadequate.